New JU hall brings new hardship for residents during rain
Jahangirnagar University has 22 dormitories. Sixteen of them are old and six others have been constructed recently under the university's "further development project".
Among the six new halls, two have opened -- one for male students and the other for female students.
The dormitory for female students is known as "hall number 18", as it has not yet been named officially. The students were happy for their accommodation at the new hall that opened just six months back. Little did they know of the suffering in store.
The hall residents said that when it rains, the reading room in the lower ground floor gets flooded with rainwater, which enters the hall's corridors and rooms, soaking the books, notebooks, bedsheets and other items kept on the floor.
Ayesha Siddika, a resident student of that hall, said, "When it rains, water actually enters the room through the balcony and door."
The drainage system is not good enough, which causes waterlogging at several places inside the hall."
Rainwater is also hampering administrative activities as it enters the office room, provost room and warden room also.
The dorm authorities submitted a written complaint recently to the university administration, seeking an immediate solution of the problem.
In the letter, they also said, "Some fans and lights have stopped working due to the waterlogging."
The power lines can also be damaged due to rainwater, causing massive accidents, the letter read.
Talking to The Daily Star, Saidur Rahman, provost of the dorm, said, "The officials from the planning and development office visited the hall and identified some other problems inside the building also. We asked them to resolve those issues for the sake of the students as soon as possible. "
On the other hand, the old dorms are in good condition.
Irfanul Islam Iftu, a resident of AFM Kamaluddin Hall which was established in 1986, said," There is no waterlogging in my hall."
Contacted, the engineering office of the university said since the hall is under the further development project, according to the rule it is the duty of the planning and development office to take care of any inconveniences in the first year of a hall's completion.
According to JU planning and development office, around Tk 77 crore was spent to build the No 18 dorm, which can accommodate of 1,000 students.
Ahsan Habib, civil engineer of the office, said, "There are windows all around the lower ground floor. So, when it rains, water enters the floor."
About the water flow from the roof, Ahsan said, "Leaves, plastic packets or other waste block the holes of the drain on the roofs. That's why, water can't pass through the pipes."
He asked the hall authorities to take immediate steps, saying that accidents can happen at any time as students use heaters and rice cookers in almost all the rooms.
"We have already asked the authorities to compensate for the damaged fans and lights," he said.
Contacted, JU Vice chancellor Prof Nurul Alam expressed his concern over the situation and said, "Waterlogging shouldn't be happening in new dorms. This is disappointing. I will immediately take action to solve the problem. I will instruct the authorities concerned to take immediate actions."
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